Button-sewing machine.



No. 690,329. Patented Dec. 3|, I901. R. W. THOMSON. BUTTON sEwme MACHINE.

IApplication filed July 8, 1897.)

4 Sheets-Sheet l.

(No Model.)

- Paten t'ed Dec. 3|, I901. n. w. THOMSON.

BUTTON SEWING MACHINE.

(Application filed July 3 1897.) I

4 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

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No. 690,329. Patented Dec. 31, I90l.

R. W. THUMSUN. BUTTON SEWING MACHINE.

(Application fiXed.July 3, 1897.)

A (No Model.)

4 Sheets-Sheet 3.

'Nn. 690,329.. Q Patented Dec. 3|, l90l.

R. W. THOMSON.

BUTTON SEWING MACHINE.

(Application filed m s, 1697.)

4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT \V. THOMSON, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE PHILADELPHIA EARRING MACHINE COMPANY, OF CAMDEN, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

BUTTON-SEWING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 690,329, dated December 31, 1901.

Application filed July 3, 1897. Serial No. 643,447. (No mod l.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ROBERT W. THOMSON, a citizen of the United States, and a resident ofLynn,Massachusetts,have invented certain Improvements in Button-Sewing Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention consists of a button-sewing machine of simple construction, whereby the buttons can be rapidly sewed by means of a double-thread lock-stitch to the button-pieces or other objects to which they are to be attached, my invention comprising means for automatically feeding the button to sewing mechanism comprising a reciprocating eyed needle and a shuttle cooperating therewith, so as to have the needle pass alternately through and outside of the shank of the button, the invention also comprising mechanism for automatically cutting out the needlethread between successive buttons, so that no subsequent finishing is required.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side View of a button-sewing machine constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a view of the same looking from the opposite side. Fig. 3 is an inverted plan view of part of the machine. Fig. 4 is a top or plan View of part of the same. Fig. 5 is a front or end View. part of the machine in a different position from that shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 7 is a sectional plan view on the line a: m, Fig. 6. Fig. 8 is a sectional view illustrating the method of cutting out the thread between successive buttons. Fig.9isaviewillustratingamodification of a certain part of the machine, and Fig. 10 is a side elevation of a preferred form of a part of the cutter mechanism.

The frame 1 of the machine has suitable bearings for the driving-shaft 2, which has fast and loose pulleys 3 and 4 for the reception of a belt from any available shaft, the machine being provided with stopping and starting devices. The shipper-lever 3 is normally retained in the position shown in Fig. 1, so as to direct the belt to the fast pulley 3 by engagement with a trigger at, which is tripped at the proper time by means of a cam on the back of a disk 7, as shown by Fig. 6 is a side view ofdotted lines at 7 in Fig. 1, the lever being then moved by a spring 4, so as to shift the belt onto the loose pulley 4 and bring a stoplug 3* into engagement with a lug on thefast pulley, so as to positively arrest the movement of the machine at the desired time. The shipper-lever 3 is restored to operative position again by the action thereupon of a lever 3 which is hung to a bracket at the rear of the machine.

On the shaft 2 is a worm 5, which engages with a worm-wheel 6, secured to the back of the cam-disk 7, said wheel and disk being mounted so as to turn with or upon a short transverse shaft or spindle 8, carried by the frame 1, the disk 7 having a peripheral camsurface adapted to act upon an antifrictionroller 9, carried by the upper arm of a lever 10, which is mounted so as to turn with or upon a short transverse shaft or spindle 11, carried by a bracket 12, secured to the bedplate of the machine, the lower arm of the lever projecting down through an opening in said bed-plate and being acted upon by a spring 10 which tends to press the roller 9 constantly againstthe peripheral cam-surface of the disk 7. Said lower arm of the lever 10 engages with one of the forked arms of a bellcrank lever 13, which is hung to a stud 14 beneath the bed-plate, as shown in Fig. 3, the other forked arm of said bell-crank lever 13 engaging with a stud 15, which likewise projects downwardly through an opening in the bed-plate and is secured by a nut 16 to the rear end of a plate 17, the latter being pivoted to the bed of the machine by means of a pivot screw or stud 18, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, so that as the cam-disk 7 is rotated a lateralswinging movement will be imparted to the plate 17.

Projecting upwardly from the plate 17 in the rear of the pivot-pin 18 is a post 19, and from the upper end of this post project for- Wardly spring-plates 20 and 21, the upper plate 21 bearing at its forward end against the lower plate 20 and the latter bearing at its forward end upon the forward end of the plate 17, so that the two plates 17 and 20 constitute a clamp between whichmay be held the button-piece or other object to which the buttons are to be sewed, the hold of the upper clamp-plate 20 upon the work being such that the latter will be compelled to move laterally with the plate 17 as the latter swings,

but can be released from such control when acted upon at the rear end by a projecting arm 26 of a lever 27, which constitutes one of the elements of the stop-motion of the machine and is vibrated by contact with the swinging arm carrying the stop-lug 3 when the latter is struck and moved by the lug on the fixed pulley, the effect of such connection being that when the machine is stopped the upper clamp-plate 20 will be lifted and held in an elevated position until it is desired to again start the machine.

Bearing upon the upper plate 21 is a pin 29, which projects from the back of a rightangled bar 31, constitutinga button-raceway, said bar being pivoted at 45 to a block 46. on the plate 17, so that it partakes of the lateral swinging movement of said plate, but is also free to swing V in a vertical plane thereon. Hence its forwardly-projectinglower portion will by the action of the plate 21 on the pin 29 be raised and lowered simultaneously with theiraising and lowering of the work-clamping plate 20. The raceway 31 has formed in ita T-shaped slot, as shown in Fig. 4, the wide portion of said slot being adapted for the reception of the heads of the buttons and the narrow portion of the slot receiving the projecting shank-sof said buttons, the slot following the curved course indicated in Figs. 1 and 2, so that a button inserted into the slot at the top of the raceway will naturally find its way by gravity and because of the jarring of the raceway to the lower front end of the latter.

Mounted upon the outerside of the raceway and following the course of the slot therein, so as to close the outer side of the wide portion of said slot, is a plate 32, the forwardlyprojecting portion of which constitutes an outer spring-wall for said slotand is under control of a set-screw 33, carried by a yoke 30, secured to the forwardly-projecting portion of the raceway, so that by the manipulation of this set-screw the plate 32 can be moved toward the raceway with any desired degree of force, and thus caused to press the heads of the buttons lightly against the inner side of said raceway, the object being to hold all of the buttons in this position without inter-, fering with their forward movement. The forward end of the plate 32 is waved or corrugated, as shown at 34, so as to form pockets for the reception of the heads of the forward buttons and prevent them from moving outwardly until pressure is exerted upon them to cause them to move in that direction.

Secured to the head portion of the frame 1 of the machine is a depending finger 35, having a lower end straight at the rear and beveled in front, as shown in Fig. 2, and as the forwardly-extending portion of the raceway is raised simultaneously with the raising of the work-clamping plate 20 this finger enters the space between the raceway and plate 32, so that its beveled lower end acts upon the buttons located in advance of it in the raceway, forcing the same forward to the extent of the diameter of a button-head, the forcing action being wholly in a forward direction, owing to the fact that there is no bevel on the rear side of the finger 35. It will therefore be seen that as the work-clamping plate 20 and raceway are lifted at the end of each sewing operation the buttons in advanceofthe finger 35 will be forced forward to the extent of one button, and as the raceway descends another button will move forward by gravity to take the place of that previously acted upon by the finger 35. Hence the buttons will be automatically fed in succession to the point which they are to occupy while being sewed fast to the button-piece or other object.

That portion of the raceway through which the shanks of the buttons pass is widened at and near the forward end of said raceway, as shown in Fig. 4, so that the shanks of the buttons passing through the slot formed in this widened portion will be straightened. and caused to lie perfectly fiat, the raceway narrowing toward the forward end, so that when the button'reaches its outermost position that is to say, the position in which it is retained while being sewedthe shank will be exposed, as shown in Fig. 4, sufi'iciently-for the passage of the needle through the same,. the raceway swinging laterally with the work holding plate 17, so that the shank of the button is alternately brought over the needlehole 36 in the work-plate and intoposition at one side of said needle-hole, the reciprocating needle-bar 37 of the machine being so operated in respect to the swinging movement of the work-plate 1'7 that the stitches will be formed alternately in the shank of the button and outside of the same.

In the present instance I have shown the outer spring-wall 32 of the raceway as provided with pockets for two buttons-namely, the one that is being sewed and the one next to the sameand the beveled finger 35 acts upon the third button from the end of the series; but it will be evident that the springs wall 32 may have a pocket only for the outermost button, ifdesired, or, on the other hand, for more than two buttons, and the finger 35 may act upon the button next to that which is being sewed or upon a button in any part of the forwardly-extending portion of the raceway.

The reciprocating needle-bar of the machine carries an eyed needle 37", which cooperates with a shuttle 37", as shownin Fig. 5, so as to form a double-thread lock-stitch, and thereby securely attach the button, the shuttle being adapted to a circular raceway 37 and being rotated or vibrated therein by any of the means usually adapted for the purpose, the. rotating or vibrating shuttle being employed because of its quick action and the limited amount of space which it occupies.

Mounted so as to turn with or upon the shaft or spindle 11 of the machine is a lever 38, which has an antifriction-roller 39, adapted to be acted upon by a cam 40 upon the outer side of the cam-disk 7, so that once in every revolution of said cam-disk 7 the lever 38 can be acted upon by a spring 41, so as to depress the forward end of said lever. The said forward end of the lever 38 carries a forked knife or cutter 42, presenting two sharpened edges separated some distance from each other laterally, these sharpened edges of the knife when the outer end of the arm is depressed eomingjinto contact with the upper face of the work-holding plate 20, so that if the ueedle-thread extends over said plate from the last button which has been sewed to thatwhich is being sewed said needle-thread will on the descentof the knife be severed at two points, as shown in Fig. 8, so as to leave adjacent to each bunch of stitches, whereby a button is secured, a loose end, which is so short that wheuthe buttonpiece or other object to which the buttons are secured is in use said loose ends will be hidden by the heads of the buttons. I thereby provide for the automatic cutting out of the piece of needle-thread between adjoining buttons and render unnecessary the cutting out of this thread by hand, as now practiced. The needle-thread will naturally lie above the presser-plate 20 in its passage from the last button which has been sewed to the button which is being sewed, since the readjustment of the work takes place when the needle is elevated. Hence the adjustment of the work so as to carry the last-sewed button laterally beyond the presser-plate 20 will cause the needle-thread to pass upwardly over said plate to the elevated needle, and as the latter descends to make the first stitch the thread will be drawn down snugly over the presserplate in condition to be cut by the knife 42 when the latter is drawn down by the action of the spring 41 on the lever 38, the latter being immediately raised by the action of the cam 40 before there is any further lateral movement of thework-holder under the action of the cam 7. The cutting. operation takes place preferably when the work-holder is in position closest to the knife 42, so that said knife will cut as closely as possible to the button which is being sewed.

Although I prefer to use for the purpose of feeding the buttons forwardly in the raceway a fixed finger operating in conjunction with a moving raceway, the reverse construction will, it is evident, effect the same purpose,

and hence, so far as my broader claims are concerned, is considered an equivalent.

As the buttons may be differently spaced, the knife 42 is detachable from the lever 38, so that knives having their cutting-faces at different distanees'apart to suit the varied spacing of the buttons may be employed, or the lever 38 may carry a pair of laterally-adjustable knives, each having a single cutting edge, as shown, for instance, at 43 in Fig. 9.

I may also in some cases, as embodied in the preferred construction shown in Fig. 10, mount the lever 38 upon the swinging workholding plate 17, so that the cutting-knife will swing to and fro with the work, in which case it is preferable to have the pivotof the lever as nearly as possible coincident with the axis of vibration of the work-holding plate, as shown in said Fig. 10, and it may also be advisable to effect the cut by a positive action instead of by the action of the spring 41, in which case the lever 38 will be acted upon by a cam 44 in order to depress the knife and by a spring 45 in order to raise the knife, as also shown in the preferred construction, Fig. 10, or it may be moved positively in both directions. I

Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. The combination in a machine for sewing shank-buttons, of sewing mechanism comprising a reciprocating eyed needle, and a shuttle cooperating to form a double-thread lock-stitch, with a raceway for the buttons, an automatic feeder for placing the buttons successively in such position that the needle can pass through the shanks of such buttons, and mechanism for cutting the needle-thread after a button has been sewed to the work.

2. The combination in a machine for sewing shank-buttons, of sewing mechanism com.- prising a reciprocating eyed needle and a shuttle cooperating to form a lock stitch with two independent threads, automatic stop mechanism for arresting the operation of the sewing mechanism after a group of stitches has been completed, a button-raceway, an automatic feeder for placing the buttons successively in such position that the needle can be passed through the shanks of said buttons, and mechanism for cutting the needle thread after the button has been sewed to the work.

3. The combinationin a machine for sewing shank-buttons, of sewing mechanism comprising a reciprocating eyed needle and a shuttle cooperating to form a lock-stitch with two independent threads, a vibrating workcarrier, a raceway for the buttons mounted upon and partaking of the movement of the said vibrating work-carrier and an automatic feeder for placing the buttons successively in such position that the needle can pass through the shanks of said buttons.

4. The combination in a machine for sewing shank-buttons, of the sewing mechanism, a

IIC

button-feeder and automatic cutting mechanism having two knives one adjacent to each button whereby the thread extending from button to button on the face of the work is cut out.

5. The combination in a machine for sewing shank-buttons, of the sewing mechanism, a workholder mounted so as to swing, and automatic cutting mechanism havingtwo knives one adjacent to each button swinging with the work-holder and serving to cut out the needle-thread between the buttons.

6. The combination inamachineforsewing shank-buttons, of the sewing mechanism, a I 5 button-feeder, a knife whereby the needlethread between successive buttons is cutout, a lever carrying said knife, a spring for moving the lever in one direction, and a cam for moving the lever in the other direction.

7. Thecombinationin amachineforsewing shank-buttons, of sewing mechanism, a button-feeder,a knife whereby the needle-th read between successive buttons is cut out, a lever carrying said knife, a spring for actuating the lever so as to raise the knife, and a cam for actuating the lever to depress the knife.

8. The combination in a machine for sewing shank-buttons, of the sewing mechanism, a button-feeder, awork-holderhavinga portion for entering between the face of the work and the needle-thread where the latter passes from button to button, and a cutter acting in conjunction with said inserted portion of the work-holder to cut out the thread between the successive buttons.

9. The within-described raceway for shankbutton-sewing machines, said raceway having a channel for the passage of the heads and shanks of the buttons, that portion of the channel which receives the shanks being narrow to permit of the projection of said shanks for the entrance of the needle and widened near said narrow portion so as to straighten and laterally guide the shanks as they approach the position in which they are held while being sewed.

10. In a sewing-machine, the combination with the stitch-forming mechanism thereof, of

ceases two separated or spaced thread-cutting de vices adapted to cut out a length or piece of thread, said thread-cutting devices each comprising a cutting-blade and an opposing cutting device located in such relation to the needle that readjustment of the work after vices adapted to cut out a length or piece of thread, said thread-cuttin g devices each comprising a cutting-blade and an opposing cutting device located in such relation to the needle thatreadjustment of the work after each sewing operation will cause the thread to be guided to the cutting devices, and automatic means for operating said blades.

12. In a sewing-machine, the combination with the stitch-forming devices thereof, of two separated cutting-blades arranged above the work-plate of the machine, adjacent to the needle thereof and placed one behind the other in the direction in which the work is to be moved or fed, so as to be adapted to cut out a length or piece of thread, a stationary opposing part or parts cooperating with said blades, and means for operating said blades.

13. In a sewing-machine, the combination with the stitch-forming devices thereof, of two separated and simultaneously-operating out ting-blades arranged above the work-plateof the machine, adjacent to the needle thereof and placed one behind the other in the direction in which the work is to be moved or fed,

so as to be adapted to out out a length or piece of thread, a stationary opposing part or parts cooperating with said blades, and automatic means for operating said blades.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ROBERT WFTHOMSON.

Witnesses:

JAMES E. ODLIN, GEO. H. WILLIAMS. 

